Florida had one of the biggest days for reported resident coronavirus deaths Tuesday with 245 new fatalities to bring the state death toll to 7,402, but new positive COVID-19 cases continue to trend down as Florida nears 500,000 infections to date.
The Florida Department of Health reported its 10th day in a row under 10,000 new cases logging 5,446 positive results to bring the total to date to 497,330, although some major testing sites were closed down over the weekend and into Monday with the threat of Tropical Storm Isaias. Florida’s record for a single-day increase was set July 12 with 15,300 new cases.
The 245 deaths don’t include two new deaths for non-Florida residents, bringing that toll to 124. Combined, more that 7,500 people have died in the state from coronavirus. Tuesday’s report is the third highest for fatalities behind the 257 reported on July 31 and 252 reported on July 30. To be clear, the state’s daily reports include deaths from several previous days as it can take two weeks or more for fatalities to be logged.
The DOH maintains a chart of deaths on its COVID-19 dashboard by actual day, which as of Tuesday shows July 17 with 146 deaths. That same chart shows 100 or more deaths every day from July 7-27. Last week from Sunday-Sunday, Florida logged 1,230 fatalities, the most since the pandemic began. Monday’s report, though, only added 73 to the tally before climbing back up with Tuesday’s report over 200 for the fourth time to date.
